Character Description: Toon Link first appeared in
The Wind Waker and
Phantom Hourglass, with big eyes and an expressive face. He lived peacefully on
Outset Island until a
bird captured
his little sister, and he came to her rescue. In
The Wind Waker, he had to crawl, press up to walls, and the like. His green clothes were worn on his 12th birthday and are the lucky outfit of the
hero of legend.
Gerudo Followups (unteched): For a full chart of Gerudo follow ups for all characters,
click here. Toon Link is vulnerable to jab, down tilt, and forward tilt followups off a missed tech. Given Tink’s light weight, landing a FTilt or DTilt at a higher percent can seal a stock.
How to Deal with Projectiles: TL, like Link, has access to bombs, arrows, and boomerangs, as well as his hookshot. Tink is very good at spacing and keeping Ganon at bay. The trick is to shield away or catch the bombs, and shield the arrows, boomerangs, and hookshot. All of these three are slower than Link’s, and TL’s floatiness makes it easy to figure out what action he will do. Perfect shielding is even better since you don’t get any pushback and can immediately retaliate. In addition, catching TL’s bomb allows you to control spacing as well and discourage TL’s followups, such as boomerang to fair combo.
Understanding the Matchup:
Ganondorf himself is a slow character with a giant hurt box, as he is extremely tall. TL is far more agile and able to maintain stage control due to his smaller height, despite his large head. TL will most likely play defensively and only come in when a projectile hit will confirm in order to follow up on that hit. The issue is that TL can afford to projectile camp Ganon, as Ganon struggles with approaching.
This doesn’t mean Ganon will suffer immensely. Ganon can powershield the projectiles away. His goal is to break TL’s zoning by approaching, and hitting him hard. TL does not have many good throw options, other than back throwing Ganon near the ledge when he’s at high percent, so you’re usually safer in your shield. Walking may also be another option better than running, since you can swat extra damage on TL if he wanders too close with a tilt or jab.
Ganon himself does really well when he lands a dash attack (weak hit) for a castle flip. The sheer power and knockback will put TL in an awkward position. In addition, a grab is a great way to land around 30 damage on TL, as down throw to nair nets around that damage and also send TL in a strange position. Down throw to up air will work at medium percent.
If you overextend, it’s best for you to regain some ground before resetting situation. That way you won’t eat up too much extra damage.
Snuffing TL's approach: Projectiles will usually be thrown at you, and a hit confirm will let TL come in to swat you with a fair. In addition, try not to let yourself get above of him, especially at low percents, since up air strings will rack up damage fairly quickly. Catching bombs and throwing them back at TL is a great way to halt his momentum. It can also lead to a followup depending on his DI, such as another choke, or neutral or up air depending on position.
IF CAUGHT ABOVE: TL will most likely be trying to string up airs for when you get back down, or hit you with an up air if you’re at higher percent to get a kill. Be careful about up air since the hitbox lasts a long period of time. In other words, using your double jump to escape may be a great idea. Air dodge with caution, since although the weak hit of Up air won’t kill, it’ll position TL for another up air, since it will still push you up.
Remember that you don’t need to land many hits to take care of TL, thanks to his light weight. A good choke can lead to a chain of chokes, thanks to his slower get up roll. Feel free to utilize the aerial variant (Aerudo) as well. Also, be aware that the Aerudo deals more damage than regular flame choke and has a slightly faster startup, and can lead to another grounded choke.
Gaining center stage control matters in this matchup, since you’re trying to limit TL’s running space. It also helps mitigates any risks you may take from getting knocked offstage. In addition, getting center stage lessens Sheik's movement options and can prompt her to approach you, which can be advantageous to us. BUT if you see a Sheik dashing forward, she is most likely going for a dash grab, which Sheiks use to employ for her various throw combos. Be wary.
Punishing a Whiff Hit: Grab if TL gets too close. Forward Tilt, Down Tilt, and Up Smash are relatively fast moves as well, in addition to dealing massive damage and knockback.
Recovering: Recovering low is not a bad idea since TL wants to refrain from going low, save for a down air suicidal spike. Fair has a bit too much cooldown for TL, as does bair, to intercept your recovery. Saving your second jump will also go a long way, as it will prevent you from getting baited as well as allow you to return onstage safely, as well as safely intercept TL’s edgeguard. Ganondorf's recovery gives a lot of vertical distance, so recovering from below is not a bad idea at all. Also feel free to hold back when recovering to give that uppercut to TL, as it'll push him away and give you time to get back on stage safely. But be careful, since TL can just opt to down air near the ledge and it’ll hit you if your opponent expects it.
Of course, mixing up your recovery is extremely vital. TL does have several options to hit you recovering low, such as pelting you with bombs or boomerangs, if you at a horizontally low angle.
Against a TL trying to land: Wizard's Foot (Wizkick) is great at covering his landings. It's a fast and relatively powerful move that can cancel at the ledge. TL usually plays keepaway, and is floaty, which means it’s easier to anticipate where TL will be landing. Up air clashes with down air, but can kill at higher percent, or just simply send TL in an awkward upwards angle. A dash attack is also another viable option, sending TL back into the air and killing at higher percents, or the weak hit setting up for a castle flip.
Grabs: Ganondorf's main grab in this matchup are the down throw and the forward throw to rack damage. Down throw racks up damage, especially with the new neutral air or up air followup. Up air and Nair send TL in awkward positions where they have to get back on the ground. BUT… Up throw sends your opponent at an awkward upwards trajectory where you can reset the situation with TL on top, and wanting to come back down. You can punish attempts to come back down, which prevents TL from going back to playing keepaway against you.
Edgeguarding: TL’s recovery goes farther than Link’s, but has less protective space. This means most aerials will be able to clash with TL’s up-B, and swat him away. Down air is considerably the most useful if TL isn’t hugging the stage. Forward air, neutral air, and back air are also good moves to keep TL away from the ledge.
TL’s primary method of recovering from the ledge against you is to either throw a projectile at you to swat you away, or hit you with a fair. Both of these are blocked by shield, and punished accordingly.
Customs to consider:
Warlock Blade: This move is slightly weaker than default Warlock Punch but has a large hitbox that rewards Ganondorf if he hits at the tip of the blade. It also has shield break properties and super armor. This move is great for stage control and, though punishable, good for interrupting approaches and momentum. Due to the slowness of all variants of Warlock Punch, neutral special isn't often used in this matchup.
Dark Fists: This move has super armor at the start and the first hit will link to the second, which is a killing blow. This can punish attempted edge guards, and has giant knock back. Also a potent OoS option. It can kill as low as 40% and delivers another potent move to Ganondorf's killing options. It can kill at a ridiculously high percent, especially if launched high up into the air. Dark Fists can also be used to ledge-stall, as the second hitbox can pop up the stage and net a surprise KO. It can also hit a projectile TL throws to extend its duration and catch TL in it, before hitting him for massive damage and knockback, potentially killing him insanely early.
Wizard's DropKick: First things first, it really helps Ganondorf's below average recovery, which mainly reaches vertically. It can bypass TL’s usual projectile wall in a pinch, and send him offstage at an awkward angle. Be sure not to overuse this, however, as it is easily punished.
Stages to consider:
Battlefield is your best bet in this scenario. TL can give you some trouble with up air strings by trapping you on a platform, but since TL has bad landing options, you can do the same, if not more. Unlike Link, TL does not have as much range to fully benefit from Battlefield’s platforms.
Lylat is generally a good Ganon stage, but it benefits both parties in which both characters can easily get stuck under the lip of the stage, leading to massive rage. TL can make use of Lylat’s main platform to projectile camp, while Ganon can make use of the three higher platforms for early Kos and platform trapping.
Smashville is another good option as the smaller base platform allows you to approach with less distance, and the moving platforms. Overall, the stage is fair for both parties.
Dream Land 64 plays a lot like the matchup on BF. Unlike Battlefield, it has a lower ceiling, but the stage itself is larger, making approaching more difficult than its more aesthetic counterpart. It's a pretty decent stage if you have rage and need to land one solid kill. Hence, pick this stage if you feel comfortable with the three platforms and BF is banned.
Final Destination is not as bad an option as it sounds, but TL is extremely comfortable here with no platforms. Even though you can make use of his bad landing options, he can make life a bit boring and hard for you by pelting you with projectiles.
Duck Hunt is a wide stage, but the ducks help with stale moves and the high blast zones make it difficult for Sheik to land an up air kill against you. It benefits TL more than you, since he’s far agile than you and he can use that fact to weave in and out, forcing you to approach.
Please ban T&C. It does nothing to you other than make the matchup easier for TL
Short Summary of Matchup:
Toon Link’s matchup against Ganon is similar, but not the same as how Link should play against him. Ganon benefits that TL is lighter and has less range, but dislikes how TL is far more mobile, making it harder to hit him. Being mobile means TL can weave in and out easily, and combined with a strong projectile game, TL can afford to camp Ganon.
However, the easiest thing to do when faced with this is to shield (preferably powershield). TL does not have good grab options and his grab itself is punishable so it’s encouraged to shield TL’s projectiles unless you’re at a high percent, in which back throw for TL becomes a kill option. Overall, you will be approaching as Ganon, and blocking what TL pelts at you. Tilts are great at swatting away TL and getting good damage, while up smash is a great way to punish TL trying to come in to throw a Fair at you. Overall, knocking TL offstage and taking advantage of his linear recovery (but one that travels farther than Link’s) will be beneficial to winning the matchup.
CM Ratio of the Matchup: 50-50
Ratio of the Matchup: 50-50
Thanks to:
A2ZOMG
@Vermanubis
adom4
@Blobface @_Magus_ @Z1GMA @Opana The toon link boards who I'll tag
FOR NEXT WEEK, WE WILL BE DISCUSSING SAMUS
